Politics
Delhi CM Atishi Formally Gets 6 Flagstaff Road Bungalow, Two Days After Her ‘Eviction’
Last Updated:
The bungalow was at the centre of an intense tussle involving the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the lieutenant governor (LG) office after Kejriwal vacated it earlier this month. (IMAGE: PTI file)
The BJP targeted Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal dubbing the bungalow, in which he lived as the Delhi chief minister for nine years, as “Sheeshmahal” for alleged irregularities in its reconstruction, costly interiors and household items there
The controversial 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow in Civil Lines was formally allotted to Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Friday, two days after she was allegedly forcibly made to vacate it, officials said.
They said the bungalow in Civil Lines has been formally allotted to Atishi after completion of due process of handover and preparation of inventory.
An offer letter issued by the Public Works Department (PWD) mentioned that as the bungalow is under investigation by the CBI and other agencies for various “violations”, the allottee is “advised” to extend full cooperation in the probe.
The BJP targeted Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal dubbing the bungalow, in which he lived as the Delhi chief minister for nine years, as “Sheeshmahal” for alleged irregularities in its reconstruction, costly interiors and household items there.
The bungalow was at the centre of an intense tussle involving the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the lieutenant governor (LG) office after Kejriwal vacated it earlier this month.
The PWD letter stated that the bungalow was allotted to Chief Minister Atishi according to the provisions of Delhi Administration Allotment of Government Residences (General Pool) Rules, 1977.
The offer letter requested her for submission of an acceptance duly forwarded with three copies of family photo, within eight days after which she will be given an “authority slip” by the PWD in order to take possession of the bungalow.
“In case of failure to take the possession of the allotted bungalow within the time specified, the allotment will be treated as cancelled,” said the letter.
It stated that the allottee will have to vacate if she was in occupation of any other government bungalow within 15 days after taking possession of the 6, Flagstaff Road residence.
Atishi was allotted AB-17 bungalow on Mathura Road, after her appointment as minister of Delhi government last year.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)
Politics
BJP To Go To Delhi Polls With New Chief? Decoding The Ifs, Buts & What Party’s Constitution Says
Last Updated:
Two senior Delhi-based BJP leaders told News18 on condition of anonymity that changing the “face of the party” in January just ahead of an election is best avoided
Will the successor of JP Nadda and BJP’s next national president be chosen before the Delhi election which is scheduled at the beginning of 2025? The answer depends on a number of factors — when the Election Commission conducts polls, how soon the BJP completes its presidential elections and how much time the party is left with in between the two elections.
WHERE IS THE PROCESS STUCK?
Whenever BJP has to find a successor for its national president, a detailed electoral process is kicked off. This was done by the party in mid-October by naming K Laxman as national returning officer, along with three national co-returning officers — Naresh Bansal, Rekha Verma and Sambit Patra. While the BJP has provisions of an electoral college, the party in its history has never seen a contest for the post, which has always been selected with unanimity.
Now that the membership drive is over, various committees will be set up at the Mandal, district, regional and state level. The president elected at every level nominates office bearers according to his or her wishes. While ideally one should wait for all state organisations to get revamped, that would take a long time. Hence, the BJP constitution allows elections once 50 per cent of the state committees have been formed. The BJP has been tight-lipped so far about whether the 50 per cent limit has been achieved, but sources say the search for Nadda’s successor will have to wait a while since the ceiling has not been met.
NADDA’S SUCCESSOR BEFORE DELHI POLL?
In September this year, former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had asked for assembly elections to be held in the Capital along with Maharashtra, where a new House must be elected before November 26. That boat, however, has sailed. Now, Delhi assembly election is scheduled to be held in either January or February 2025. The term of the Delhi Assembly ends on February 23, 2025.
While a large section of the party thinks the BJP is “very much comfortable” spearheading the exercise any day of the month — December 2024 or January 2025 that the “leadership deems fit” — at least two senior Delhi-based BJP leaders told News18 on condition of anonymity that changing the “face of the party” in January just ahead of an election is best avoided. They also told News18 that such views are communicated to senior leaders through the “right forums”.
CAN THEY WRAP UP IN DECEMBER?
News18 has reliably learnt that all state units have been told to get their presidents elected and have them nominate their team by the first week of December. BJP general secretary Arun Singh, who is also in-charge of the BJP headquarters, is learnt to be in regular coordination with state units.
The election office that is now operating out of the 6A, Deen Dayan Upadhyay Marg office is in regular coordination with states and Singh’s office.
Party sources suggest the BJP, in eventualities of supposed inauspicious period, will likely ignore them. The source has cited a precedence from 2023 when the central observers for Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh, where the BJP then won elections, were announced amid ‘Kharmas’. The chief ministerial pick was also announced by the BJP during the “inauspicious” period, breaking years of tradition.
Politics
Massive Drama Unfolds in J&K Assembly As MLAs Engage In Scuffle Over Article 370 | Video
Last Updated:
Jammu and Kashmir Assembly had passed a resolution on the restoration of special status, a move that was opposed by the BJP.
A massive drama unfolded in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly as the House resumed on Thursday with the MLAs engaging in a scuffle over the issue of resolution to restore the special status of the Union Territory.
As the Assembly resumed today, Engineer Rashid’s brother and MLA Khurshid Ahmad Sheikh displayed a banner on Article 370, a move which was objected to by Leader of Opposition and BJP MLA Sunil Sharma.
“The resolution was unconstitutional. You broke the rules of the House,” he said.
The BJP MLAs moved to the well of the House and attempted to snatch Sheikh’s banner, leading to a scuffle among them.
#WATCH | A ruckus breaks out at J&K Assembly in Srinagar after Engineer Rashid’s brother & MLA Khurshid Ahmad Sheikh displayed a banner on Article 370. LoP Sunil Sharma objected to this. House adjourned briefly. pic.twitter.com/iKw8dQnRX1— ANI (@ANI) November 7, 2024
The chaos in the House led to its brief adjournment.
More to follow…
- Location :
Srinagar, India
Politics
‘Colonial Mindset’: Royal Scions Hit Out At Rahul Gandhi Over ‘Plaint Maharajas’ Remark
Last Updated:
In an opinion piece in The Indian Express, Gandhi said India was silenced by the East India Company and it was silenced not by its business prowess, but by its chokehold.
Royal scions across India criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for referring to their ancestors as “plaint Maharajas” who were threatened by the East India Company that ruined the nation, saying he had a “superficial understanding of history”. They also pointed out Rahul’s “selective amnesia” that made him forget the privileges he enjoyed due to his lineage.
Union Minister Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia, who is from the Scindia family that ruled Gwalior until India’s independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, took to X writing, “Your selective amnesia about your own privilege is a disservice to those truly striving against adversity. Your dissonance only exposes Congress’ agenda further—Rahul Gandhi is no champion of Atmanirbhar Bharat; he is merely a product of an outdated entitlement.”
I strongly condemn Mr RahulGandhi’s attempt to malign the erstwhile royal families of India in an editorial today.The dream of integrated India was only possible because of the utmost sacrifice of the erstwhile royal families of India.
Baseless allegations made on the basis… pic.twitter.com/7uy23Q6I1w
— Diya Kumari (@KumariDiya) November 6, 2024
What The Scions Said
Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari, who is the granddaughter of Man Singh II, the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jaipur during the British Raj in India, called Rahul’s Opinion piece an “attempt to malign the erstwhile royal families of India”.
I strongly condemn Mr RahulGandhi’s attempt to malign the erstwhile royal families of India in an editorial today.The dream of integrated India was only possible because of the utmost sacrifice of the erstwhile royal families of India.
Baseless allegations made on the basis… pic.twitter.com/7uy23Q6I1w
— Diya Kumari (@KumariDiya) November 6, 2024
Vikramaditya Singh, a former Congress leader and the grandson of Maharaja Sir Hari Singh, who was the last ruler of the Indian princely state of Kashmir, and the heir of the Dogra dynasty, called out Rahul Gandhi’s “superficial understanding of history”.
The article reflects Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s superficial understanding of history. The Maharajas contribution and role can hardly be reduced to simply “pliant” to the East India Company. Many of these Maharajas were not handed over ready-made kingdoms to rule, but rather started from… https://t.co/tLcMdT2ESg— Vikramaditya Singh (@vikramaditya_JK) November 6, 2024
Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar, a scion of the 1,500-year-old House of Mewar in Udaipur, slammed Rahul Gandhi and said, “Despite being divided by the colonial structure, the royal families have always been a protector of their people and have played an essential role in shaping India’s economic, cultural and political landscape.”
@RahulGandhi @JM_ScindiaThe royal families of India, throughout history, have consistently embodied a spirit of cooperation in governance rather than resorting to control and exploitation.Despite being divided by the colonial structure, the royal families have always been a…
— LakshyarajSinghMewar (@lakshyarajmewar) November 6, 2024
Chaitanya Raj Singh, a member of the family that ruled the erstwhile Kingdom of Jaisalmer, said called Rahul Gandhi’s claims “baseless”.
He said, “The valour and selfless services of our families in upholding our dharma can be seen transparently in the love showered to us by the people all over India from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Jaisalmer to Tripura. The brave and ethical are fearless as they have a karma yog approach with integration of humanity and nature.”
.@RahulGandhi These baseless allegations regarding the ‘erstwhile’ royal families are unacceptable. The valour and selfless services of our families in upholding our dharma can be seen transparently in the love showered to us by the people all over India from Kashmir to… pic.twitter.com/1XJ1z0wM5O— Chaitanya Raj Singh (@crsinghbhati) November 6, 2024
What Rahul Gandhi Said
The original East India Company wound up over 150 years ago but the raw fear it then generated is back with a new breed of monopolists having taken its place, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday.
He, however, asserted that a “new deal for progressive Indian business is an idea whose time has come”.
In an opinion piece in The Indian Express, Gandhi said India was silenced by the East India Company and it was silenced not by its business prowess, but by its chokehold.
The Company choked India by partnering with, bribing, and threatening more pliant maharajas and nawabs, he pointed out.
“It controlled our banking, bureaucratic, and information networks. We didn’t lose our freedom to another nation; we lost it to a monopolistic corporation that ran a coercive apparatus,” he said.
The original East India Company wound up over 150 years ago, but the raw fear it then generated is back, he claimed.
A new breed of monopolists has taken its place, amassing colossal wealth, even as India has become far more unequal and unfair for everybody else, Gandhi said.
“Our institutions no longer belong to our people, they do the bidding of monopolists. Lakhs of businesses have been decimated and India is unable to generate jobs for her youth,” the former Congress president said.
Choose your India:Play-Fair or Monopoly?Jobs or Oligarchies?Competence or Connections?Innovation or Intimidation?Wealth for many or the few?
I write on why a New Deal for Business isn’t just an option. It is India’s future. pic.twitter.com/sGbC89ZFMF
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 6, 2024
Sharing the article on X, Gandhi said, “Choose your India: Play-Fair or Monopoly? Jobs or Oligarchies? Competence or Connections? Innovation or Intimidation? Wealth for many or the few?” “I write on why a New Deal for Business isn’t just an option. It is India’s future,” he said, sharing his opinion piece.
-
Politics11 months ago
‘Status Symbol’: As Splinter Faction Claims to Be ‘Real JD(S)’, Is Party Headed Shiv Sena, AIADMK, NCP Way?
-
Politics1 year ago
Prime Minister Narendra Modi To Launch Projects Worth ₹21,500 crore In Poll Bound Telangana | News18
-
Press Release11 months ago
Google Chrome Launches A New AI Tool Named ‘Help Me Write’
-
Tech12 months ago
Andreessen Horowitz backs Civitai, a generative AI content marketplace with millions of users
-
Cryptocurrency1 year ago
Recent Funding Rounds for Crypto Projects & Companies on October 19th💼🚀
-
Tech1 year ago
Character.AI introduces group chats where people and multiple AIs can talk to each other
-
Cryptocurrency1 year ago
Recent Funding Rounds for Crypto Projects & Companies on Oct 18th🚀💰
-
Entertainment6 months ago
Why Brenda Edwards is wearing an eye patch on Loose Women